Railway switch operating apparatus



May 3, 1938. H. BONE RAILWAY SWITCH OPERATING APPARATUS Filed March 2,1937 6 Sheets-Sheet l 1 T' lg k ifhm l l l f l a L IHI L u\\lfrlllllllllll g Ill/IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII a1kg INVENTOR Herbal .fiane.

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HLS ATTORNEY May 3, 1938. H. BONE RAILWAY SWITCH OPERATING APPARATUS.

Filed March 2, 1937 '6 Sheets-Sheet 2 a a g H TB m UNNN I m ww Ev w 4B mm Wm M Q May 3, 1938. H. BONE RAILWAY SWITCH OPERATING APPARAT US FiledMarch 2 www n a m a v Rn W W SE m wm ww w N I H53 ATTORNEY y 1938- H. L.BONE 2,115,902

RAILWAY SWITCH OPERATING APPARATUS Filed March 2, 1957 e Sheets-Shet 4III/111111111111111lzlllll lllllllllllllllI HIS ATTORNEY H. L. BONE May3, 1938.

RAILWAY SWITCH OPERATING APPARATUS Filed March 2, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 5m 0 mg a S W @m 9 A Ow v m C fl o y 1938- H. L. BONE 2,115,902

RAILWAY SWITCH OPERATING APPARATUS I Filed March 2, 1937 6 Sheets-Sheet6 Fame ('12 my. Z0.

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HIS ATTORNEY Patented May 3, 1938 PATENT OFFICE 2,115,902 RAILWAY swrronOPERATING APPARATUS HerbertL. Bone, Forest Hills, Pa., assignor to TheUnion Switch & Signal Company, Swissvale, Pa., a corporation ofPennsylvania ApplicationMarch 2, 1937, Serial No. 128,645

, 19 Claims. (01. 245-284) My invention relates to railway switchoperating apparatus, and particularly to manually controlled switchoperating apparatus for switches of the type which are designed to betrailed.

One object of my invention is to provide novel means whereby, when themovable rails of a switch of the type described are displaced from a setposition by a trailing train, the rails will become biased to a positionopposite to the set position until after the train has completely passedthe switch, whereupon the rails will again'become biased to their setposition.

I will describe one form of apparatus embodying my invention, and willthen point out the novel features thereof in claims. 1

In the accompanying drawings, Fig. l is a top plan view showing arailway switch provided with one form of switch operating mechanismembodying my invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged side View, partly insection and partly in elevation, of the operating mechanism shown inFig. 1. Fig. 2a is a view showing a target which forms part of themechanism illustrated in Fig. 2. Fig. 3 is a top plan view, partly insection and partly in elevation, of the mechanism shown in Fig. 2; Fig.4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the spring unit S forming part ofthe mechanism shown in Figs. 2 and 3 taken on the line IVIV of Fig. 3.Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8 are sectional views taken substantially on thelines V-V, VIVI, VIIVII, and VIII-NIH of Fig. 2. Fig. 9 is a Viewsimilar to' Fig. 3 but showing the parts in the positions which theyoccupy while-a train is trailing the switch. Fig. 10 is a diagramshowing the various forces exerted on the switch points.

Similar reference characters refer to parts in each of the severalviews.

Referring first to Fig. 1, the reference character A designates arailway switch comprising, as usual, two fixed rails l and l and twomovable rails or switch points 2 and 2 The fixed rails l and i are laidon tie plates 3 and are secured to crossties d in the usual manner. Themovable rails 2 and 2 are fastened together by a front rod 5, a head rod6, a bridle rod 1, and a; tie rod 8, and may be moved into a normal or areverse position by means of an operating rod 9, which is connected withthe head rod 6 through the medium of the usual switch basket l0. -Whenthe switch occupies its normal position, inwhich it is shown in Fig. l,the movable rail 2v engages the fixed rail 3, and the movable rail i isspaced a slight distance from the fixed rail I When the switch isreversed, however," the movable rail 2 similar then engages the fixedrail l and the movable rail 2 is spaced from the fixed rail l.

Associated with the switch A is a switch operating mechanism Bcomprising a casing H which is bolted or spiked to the ties 4 adjacentthe outer side of the rail I, and an auxiliary casing I2 which is boltedto the left-hand end of the casing H. The main casing II is providedwith a removable cover [3, while the auxiliary casing 82 is providedwith aremovable cover M.

Extending downwardly through the main casing H is a rotatable spindle orswitch actuating shaft I6, and attached to the lower end of this shaftisan adjustable crank I! which is pivotally connected with thepreviously described operating rod 9, the parts being so proportionedthat rotation of the shaft l6 through an angle of approximately willmove the switch between its normal and reverse positions. The lowerportion of the shaft it, that is, the portion within the casing l I ismade round, and is journaled in a bear ing [8 provided in the bottom ofthe casing H, and. in a star block I9, which, in turn, is jour naled ina bearing 20' formed in the top of the casing II. The portion of theshaft it above the top of this star block bearing, however, is madesquare,- and has a somewhat smaller cross-sectional area than the lowerportion of the shaft. Secured to the square portion of the shaft is asquare sleeve 2i, and slidably mounted on this sleeve is an outer sleeve22 which is provided with a square opening to receive the inner sleeveso that both sleeves and the shaft are constrained to rotate together.

When the outer sleeve 22 occupies its lowermost position on the innersleeve, in which position it is shown in the drawings, a squared portion23 formed on the lower end of the outer sleeve enters a square recess orsocket 24 formed in the upper end of the star block I9, and, under theseconditions, the outer sleeve, and hence the shaft i6, is connected withthe star block, so that any rotation of the shaft will causecorresponding rotation of the star block. When, however, the outersleeve 22 is moved to an upper position on the inner sleeve, the squareportion 23 on the lower end of the outer sleeve becomes disengaged fromthe socket 24 in'the star block, and the two sleeves and the shaft arethen free to rotate as a unit independently of the star block.

The outer sleeve22 is arranged to be moved between-its two extremepositions by means of a hand. lever 21 which also serves as'a means forrotating the switch actuating shaft between its two extreme positions.This lever is bifurcated at one end, and the bifurcations thereof aredisposed on opposite sides of the squared portion formed at the upperend of the outer sleeve and are pivoted on their free ends on a bolt 28mounted in a lug 29 formed on the inner sleeve 2|. Each bifurcationextends between a pair of lugs 30 which are secured to the associatedside of the outer sleeve 22, only one pair of lugs being visible in thedrawings. The parts are, so proportioned that when the lever 21 isrotated about the bolt 28 to the de-' pending position in which it isshown in the drawings, the outer sleeve 22 will be'moved to itslowermost position on the inner sleeve, but that, when the lever 21 isrotated about the bolt 28 to a substantially horizontal position theouter sleeve will then be moved to its upper position on the innersleeve. switch actuating shaft l6 will be connected with, ordisconnected from, the star block |9 according as the lever 21 occupiesits depending or its horizontal position, and that, when the leveroccupies its horizontal position, the shaft l3 may be rotated betweenits two extreme positions to move the switch points to theircorresponding extreme positions by rotating the lever about the axis ofthe shaft without causing rotation of the star block.

When the hand lever 21 occupies its depending position, which positionis its normal position, it may be'locked in this position by placing apadlock or other suitable locking device through a hole |5| formed inthe outer end of a lug |5| which is fastened to the outer sleeve 22, andwhich passes through a suitable slot I52 of the lever 21.

A suitable signal, here shown as a pair of vanes 3|, positioned withrespect to each other in plan view, is fastened to the upper end of theswitch actuating shaft l6 and serves to accurately indicate at all timesthe position of the switch.

The star block I9 is normally biased to the position in which it isshown in the drawings by means of two spring units S and S which arelocated in the left-hand end of the main casing These spring units aresimilar and a description of one will therefore suffice for both.Referring particularly to the spring unit S shown in detail in Fig. 4,this spring unit comprises a cylindrical housing 32' having an end plate33 provided with vertically spaced apertured lugs 34 and an end plate 35provided with a centrally disposed hole 35. Located within the housing32 is a coil spring 31, one end of which abuts against an outwardlyextending flange 38 forming part of a member 38, and the other end ofwhich abuts against an outwardly extending flange 39 forming part of amember 39. The member 38 is free to slide in an axial direction withinthe housing 32, and is provided at the end opposite to the flange 38with an inwardly ex tending annular flange 38 which forms a centrallylocated hole 38. The member 39 is likewise free to slide in an axialdirection within the housing 32, and is provided with a centrallylocated hole 39 A tube 40 is screwed onto the inner end of the member38, and mounted within this tube between the member 38 and an end plate4| which is screwed into the right-hand end of the tube is a compressedcoil spring 42. A hole 4| is formed in the end plate 4| in axialalignment with the hole 38 in the member 38, and slidably mounted in thetube 40 between the spring 42 and the end plate 4| is a washer 43 havinga centrally located hole 43*, the diameter It follows that the of whichis somewhat smaller than the diameter of the hole 4| in the end plate4|. A spring bolt 44 passes through the hole 35 in the end plate 35, thehole 39 in the member 39, the hole 4 in the end plate 4|, the hole 43 inthe washer 43, and the hole 38 in the member 38, and is provided at itsinner end with a head 44 Which cooperates with the left-hand side of theinwardly extending flange 38 of the member 38. Threaded on the outer endof the spring bolt 44 is a nut 45 and an eye 46, and slidably mounted onthe spring bolt adjacent the nut 45 is a sleeve 48 which extends withclearance through the hole 39 in the member 39 and cooperates at itsinner end with the washer 43 in such manner that, if the spring bolt ismoved into the housing more than a predetermined distance, the sleevewill engage the washer 43 and compress the spring 42, the hole 4| in theend plate 4| being made sufficiently large to permit the sleeve 48 tofreely enter this hole. A shoulder 48 having a diameter which issomewhat smaller than the diameter of the hole 35 in the end plate 35,but which is somewhat larger than the diameter of the hole 39 in themember 39, is formed on the outer end of the sleeve 48, and the nut 45is screwed to such a position on the bolt that when the members 38 and39 are each engaging the associated end plate, the head 44 of the bolt44 will engage the flange 38 of the member 38 and the shoulder 48 on thesleeve 48 will engage the outer face of the member 39. It will be seen,therefore, that movement of the spring bolt 44 relative to the housing32 in either direction will act through the member 38 or the member 39,as the case may be, to compress the outer spring 31, but that the innerspring 42 will only become compressed in the event that the bolt 44 ismoved into the housing 32 beyond the position in which the inner end ofthe sleeve 48 moves into engagement with the washer 43. The eye 46 islocked in place on the outer end of the spring bolt 44 by means of acotter key 41.

The right-hand end of the spring unit S is operatively connected withthe star block l9 by means of a pin 50 which passes through theassociated eye 46 and through a pair of vertically spaced lugs 5| whichare formed integrally with the star block and which straddle the eye;and the right-hand end of the spring unit S is similarly operativelyconnected with the star block |9 by means of a pin 52 which passesthrough the'eye 45 of this latter spring unit and through a pair ofvertically spaced lugs 53, which are also formed integrally with thestar block, and which straddle the last-mentioned eye. The two pairs oflugs are angularly spaced from each other by a distance of approximatelyas shown in Fig. 3, and are also vertically spaced from each other asufficient distance to permit the unit S to swing underneath the unit Sunder certain conditions which will appear hereinafter.

The left-hand ends of the two spring units S and S are operativelyconnected with a floating supporting plate 54 (see Fig. 5) at itsopposite sides, and in vertically spaced relation, by means of pins 55and 5B which pass through the lugs 34 on the end plates 33, and throughcooperating lugs 51 and 58 formed on the supporting plate. Thesupporting plate 54 is slidably mounted on the square shanks of. bolts59 and 60 in such manner that the plate is free to swing about avertical axis which coincides with the axis of the pin .55, or avertical axis. which coincides with the axis of the pin 58. The bolts 59and 68 are secured to the end wall of the housing II and are providedwith rectangular heads which, on the sides adjacent the shanks arebeveled in the manner shown, and act as stops to limit the motion of theplate 54 toward the star block under some conditions. Movement of thefloating plate 55 in the opposite direction is limited by rounded stops5i and 62 which cooperate with stop surfaces 53 and 54, respectively,formed on the end wall of the casing II. The parts are so proportionedthat when the star block I9 occupies the position shown, and thefloating plate 54 occupies the position in which the stops 6| and 62engage the associated stop surfaces 53 and 84, both spring units S and Swill exert a force on the star block which is suflicient to hold thestar block in the position shown when the star block is connected withthe switch, but which is not suflicient to compress the springs 3'! ofthe spring units S and S beyond their initial compression.

The floating plate 54 is pivotally connected at its center by means of.a pivot pin 65 with one end of a pull rod 88, the other end of which issecured to a substantially rectangular yoke 51 that surrounds the starblock IS. The yoke 61 is slidably supported on a cam 88 which is formedintegral with the star block, and has secured thereto three rollers l8,'El, and ii. The rollers I8 and II are disposed at opposite sides of theyoke, and cooperate with the opposite edges of a cam I3, which is alsoformed integrally with the star block, to position the yoke in atransverse direction with respect to the star block when the star blockoccupies the position shown. The roller I2 cooperates with the cam I3 insuch manner that rotation of the star block in either direction from theposition shown will move the yoke, and hence the pull rod 66, toward theright.

The right-hand side of the yoke 61, as viewed in Figs. 2 and 3, isprovided with a tail piece I4 which carries a guide roller I5 and. alatch block '15 having beveled sides. The guide roller 15 cooperateswith one end 'I'I of a transversely extending groove I! provided in theunderside of a latch arm I8 forming part of an electric latch E, and thelatch block 76 cooperates with the other end N of the groove TI. Thelatch arm I8 is mounted at one end on a pivot pin 19 secured to thecasing H, and carries at its opposite end an armature 78 whichcooperates with an electromagnet 88. The electromagnet 80 is secured tothe casing I2, and is connected in a track circuit which includes thetwo stock rails I and I in parallel (see Fig. 1) and a source ofcurrent, here shown as a battery F. It will be seen, therefore, that theelectromagnet 8!] will become energized whenever a train trails theswitch. The end I'I of the groove l! is formed with vertical sides,while the other end 11 is formed with beveled sides which slopedownwardly and outwardly, as shown by Fig. 7.

The apparatus also includes two rocker arms 85 and 86. The rocker arm 85is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on a pivot pin 81 mountedin. a pair of spaced lugs 9I secured to the sides of the casing I I, andis provided at one end with a roller 88 which cooperates with the edge55 of the cam 58. The other end of the rocker arm 85 cooperates with aroller 89 (see 5) mounted on the upper end of the pin 56 which securesthe spring unit S to the floating plate 54. The rocker arm 86 is similarto the rocker arm 85 except that it is of the opposite hand, and thislatter rocker arm is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on apivot pin 90 mounted in a pair of spaced lugs 92 secured to the side ofthe casing II directly opposite the lugs 9|. The rocker arm 88 isprovided at one end with a roller 93 which cooperates with the edge I58of the cam 68, and the free end of this rocker arm cooperates with aroller 94 (see Fig. 5) mounted on the lower end of the pin 55 whichsecures the spring unit S to the floating supporting plate 54. A spring95 is stretched between the two rocker arms, and constantly biases thesearms to the position in which the rollers 88 and 83 engage the cam 68.The parts are so proportioned that when the star block occupies itsnormal position in which it is shown in the draw-' ings, and the rollers88 and 93 are engaging the cam 68, the ends of the rocker arms willcooperate with the rollers 89 and 94 to hold the floating plate 54 inthe position shown, but that, when the star block is rotated away fromthe position shown in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3,the roller 88 will ride up onto the high part of the cam 68, and willthus rotate the rocker arm 85 in a counterclockwise direction to theposition shown in Fig. 9 in which position the roller 89 of the floatingplate 54 is free to move past the end of the rocker arm, and that, whenthe star block is rotated away from the position shown in a clockwisedirection, as viewed in Fig. 3, the roller 93 will ride up onto the highportion of the cam 68, and will thus rotate the rocker arm 86 in aclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3, to the position in which theroller 94 on the floating plate 54 is free to move past the end of therocker arm 86.

Reciprocably mounted in the bottom of the casing II is a locking deviceIilIl (see Fig. 8) which in the particular embodiment of my inventionhere illustrated, comprises two spaced end members 38 and Iilficonnected together by means of a pair of spaced bolt members Hi8 and i98The right-hand end member I80 is provided on its right-hand side with anintegral rectangular locking plunger i80 while the left-hand end memberIiiii is provided with a centrally located hole 18 The locking plungerI88 is mounted to slide in a guideway IIJI (see Fig. 2) formed in thebottom of the casing l i, and is adapted to cooperate with a lock rod Lwhich is slidably mounted in the casing H at right angles to the lockingplunger. The lock rod L is of standard construction, and comprises twolongitudinally adjustable bars 33 and H33 (see Fig. 1) attached at oneend to the front rod of the switch A, and provided with two registeringnotches I93 so disposed that these notches will align with the lockingplunger when and only when the switch A occupies its normal extremeposition in which it is shown in the drawings. The locking device I80 isarranged to be moved, in a manner which will be described hereinafter,between a right-hand extremeposition in which the locking plunger I89 iswithin the notches I83 in the rod L, and a left-hand extreme position inwhich the locking plunger lllll is withdrawn from the notches I03, andit will be apparent that when the locking device is moved to theposition in which the locking plunger is within the notches, the switchA will be positively locked in its normal extreme position, but that,when the locking device is moved to the position in which the lockingplunger is withdrawn from the notches III? in the lock rod L, the switchA will then be unlocked.

The bolt members Hill and H38 of the locking device I88 are slidablymounted adjacent their left-hand ends in suitable guides I06 and H17,respectively, which are provided on the bottom of the main casing I I,and surrounding each bolt member between the end member It'll) and the 3associated guides I86 and I! is a tightly compressed coil spring I98which constantly biases the locking device I00 to its right-hand extremeposition.

A bell crank lever IE9 is pivoted on a rod II II mounted in a pair ofspaced plugs III which are screwed into the sides of the casing H andthe one arm 39 thereof extends downwardly and is provided at its lowerend with a rounded portion H38 which cooperates with an L shapedextension Illll provided on end member I08, in a manner which will bedescribed hereinafter. The other arm I 95 of the bell crank lever I09extends toward the left as viewed in Fig. 2, and is pivotally connectedat its free end by means of a pin H2 with the lower end of a verticallyextending connecting rod H4.

The connecting rod i I4 is shaped as shown, and comprises an integraloffset portion H4. This connecting rod extends upwardly through arcuateslots H5 and H6 formed in the cams 68 and I3, and through a guideway H'Iformed in the top wall of the casing I l, and is provided at its upperend with a lateral extension II4 -which overlies and cooperates with anannular flange I I8 formed on the sliding sleeve 22 directly above thesquared portion 23. A two-piece collar H9 is bolted to the slidingsleeve 22 some distance from the annular flange H8 and lateral extensionH4", and extending downwardly from this collar is a frusto-conical hoodi20 which completely encloses the upper part of the offset portion I I4of the connecting rod H4 and the annular flange H8, thus protectingthese parts from dirt, moisture, etc.

The connecting rod I I4 is also provided with an integral lateralextension H4 which overlies and cooperates with cam faces I3 and I3formed on the upper side of the cam 13. The two cam faces I3 and 13curve downwardly toward each other, as shown in Figs. 2 and 6.

The parts are so proportioned that when the sliding sleeve 22 occupiesits lowermost position,

and the star block I9 occupies the position to which it is biased by thespring units S and S as shown in the drawings, the connecting rod I I4will be moved to the position in which it is shown in the drawings,which position I shall'hereinafter refer to as its lowermost position.The parts are further so proportioned that when the connecting rod H4occupies its lowermost position, the underside of the lateral extensionII4I of the connecting rod will engage the upper side of the annularflange H8, the underside of the lateral extension I It will engage thecam 13 between the two cam faces I3 and 13 and the bell crank lever I68will be rotated to a position in which the rounded portion I09 wouldengage the left-hand side of the end member W of the locking device 503if the locking device were then moved to its extreme right-hand positionby the biasing springs I08.

The locking device I60, in addition to being operatively connected withthe sliding sleeve 22 and the star block I9 in the manner justdescribed, is also operatively connected with the previously describedtie rod 8 by means of linkage which I will now describe.

As here shown, this linkage includes a plunger bolt I2I (see Figs. 1, 2,and 3) which extends with some clearance through the hole II!!! in theend member IllIl of the locking device I00, and the head of which boltcooperates with the righthand side of the end member I00 Thethreadedleft-hand end of the plunger bolt I2I is adjustably connected bymeans of a turnbuckle I22 with one end of a link I23, the other end ofwhich link is pivotally connected with a long arm I24 and a bell cranglever I24. The bell crank lever I24 is pivotally supported in a crankstand I25, and has its short arm I24 pivotally connected with one end ofan operating rod I26. The other end of the operating rod 126 isconnected by means of a standard switch basket I2'I with the previouslydescribed tie rod 8. The tie rod 8 may be located at any desiredlocation, but will preferably be located approximately half-way betweenthe heel and the point of the switch. The base I28 of the crank standI25 is secured both to a gauge plate I29, and to the bed plate I5, whichbed plate, in turn, is secured to the mechanism B, and it will beapparent, therefore, that any loss of adjustment between the parts dueto creepage of the ties is prevented.

For reasons which will be made clear presently, theextreme position towhich the locking plunger IllIl is movable within the notches IEI3 inthe lock rod L is beyond the normal locking position in which it isshown in the drawings, and the linkage connecting the locking devicewith the tie rod 8 is so adjusted that when the switch occupies itsnormal extreme position the head of the plunger bolt I2I will engage theend member I00 when the locking plunger has been moved to its lockingposition and will prevent the locking plunger from moving beyond itslocking position.

The auxiliary casing I2 referred to hereinbefore houses a circuitcontroller C in such manner that this circuit controller can be added toor removed from the remainder of the switch operating apparatus withoutdisturbing the remainder of the switch operating apparatus. The detailsof construction of this circuit controller are similar in all respectsto those of the circuit controller described and claimed in LettersPatent of the United States No. 1,989,128, granted to me on January 29,1935, for Railway switch circuit controllers, andin themselves form nopart of my present invention, except insofar as they are used incombination with the rest of the apparatus. Briefly, this circuitcontroller includes two separate sets of contacts, one set of which isusually referred to as plunger lock contacts and the other set of whichis usually referred to as point detector contacts. The plunger lockcontacts are each designated by the reference characters I3IJ-I3I, andare all controlled by a contact operating member I32 pivotally attachedto one end of a rocker arm I 33, which rocker arm, in turn, is pivotedintermediate its ends on a fixed pin I34, and is provided in the endopposite to the operating member with a cam slot I 35, and with a camface I35 which cooperates with a roller I36 mounted in the upper end ofa bracket I 31 secured to the upper face ofthe locking plunger I30 Whenthe'locking device I00 occupies its locking position in which positionit is shown in the drawings, the roller I36 engages the cam slot I35 atan offset portion I 35, and under these conditions, the rocker arm I33is rotated to an extreme position in which the plunger lock contactsI3!)-I3I are all closed. When, however, the locking device I00 is movedin either direction from its normal locking position, the roller I36 isforced out of the offset portion I35 of the cam slot I35, and the rockerarm I33 is then rotated to another extreme position in which the plungerlock contacts I3II-I3I are open.

The point detector contacts of the circuit controller C are eachdesignated by the reference characters I38--I39, and are all controlledby a contact operating member I40 provided with a roller I4! whichcooperates with a recess I42 formed in the point detector rod D. Thepoint detector rod D is slidably mounted inthe casing i2 transverselythereof, and is attached at one end by means of a link Hid and a boltmember I04 to the movable rail 2 of the switch A in the usual andwell-known manner. The recess I42 in the point detector rod D is sopositioned that it will align with the roller I4I when and only when theswitch occupies its normal position and the movable rail 2 is tightagainst the fixed rail I, and the parts are so proportioned that whenthe recess I42 aligns with the roller I4 I, this roller will enter thenotch, thereby permitting the contact operating member 34% to rotate bygravity to a position in which it is out of engagement with the contactfingers N9 of the point detector contacts, thus causing these contactsto close by virtue of the inherent resiliency of the contact fingers.When, however, the roller MI is forced out of the recess M2 in the pointdetector rod D, the contact operatin member I49 will be positivelyrotated to the position in which the point detector contacts I33i39become opened.

The circuit controller C further comprises lock mechanism whereby, ifthe roller MI is forced out of the recess I42 in the point detector rodD, when the locking device H30 occupies any position in which thelocking plunger IIIIJ is within the notches 33 in the lock rod L, thepoint detector contacts will, after becoming opened in the mannerpreviously described, subsequently be held open until the latchmechanism is manually operated to permit these contacts to again becomeclosed. The plunger lock contacts and point detector contacts of circuitcontroller C may be used to control signals for controlling trafiic overswitch A in a well-known manner.

The operation of the apparatus as a whole is as follows: As shown in thedrawings, the movable rails of the switch are in their normal positionand the hand-throw lever 2'! occupies its depending position. Underthese conditions, the sliding sleeve 22 is held in its lowermostposition on the inner sleeve 2|, and the star block I9 is accordinglyconnected with the switch actuating shaft i 6 so that the spring units Sand S are effective to hold the movable rails of the switch in theirnormal positions. Furthermore, under these conditions, the connectingrod I I 4 is held in its lowermost position, and the locking device I isheld in its locking position by the biasing springs I 08. As waspreviously pointed out, when the locking device IE B occupies itslocking position, the movable rails of the switch are locked in theirnormal position, and the plunger lock contacts I30--I3I of circuitcontroller C are closed. Point detector rod D occupies the position inwhich the recess I42 aligns with the roller MI and the point detectorcontacts I38I39 of circuit controller C are, therefore, closed. Sinceboth the point detector and plunger lock contacts of circuit controllerC are closed, the signals governing trafiic over switch A would displaya proceed indication, thereby indicating that the movable railsof switchA are in their normal positions and are properly locked in thesepositions for main line trafiic over the switch. The circuit for themagnet 80 of the electric latch E is open, and this magnet is thereforedeenergized so that the latcharm I8 is free to move upwardly.

I will now assume that it is desired to reverse the switch A. To dothis, the hand lever 21 is first raised to its horizontal position. Thispreliminary movement of the hand lever raises the sliding sleeve 22 fromits lowermost position in which it is shown in the drawings to itsuppermost position, and, as was previously described, when the slidingsleeve' 22 is moved to its uppermost position, the squared portion 23 onthe lower end of this sleeve becomes disengaged from the socket 24 inthe upper end of the star block I9, thus disconnecting the star block,and hence the spring units S} and S from the switch actuating shaft,

so that the switch actuating shaft is then free to rotate without anyopposition from the biasing devices. Furthermore, when the slidingsleeve 22 is moved to its uppermost position, the

annular flange I I8 on the lower end of this sleeve cooperates with thelateral extension I W of the connecting rod I I4 to move the connectingrod I I4 to its uppermost position, and this movement of the connectingrod, in turn, acts through the bell crank lever H39 to move thelockingdevice I00 from its normal locking position in which it is shown in thedrawings to a position in which the locking plunger IIJI] is completelywithdrawn from the notches I03 in the lock rod L, thus unlocking theswitch, and at the same time actuating rocker arm I33 of circuitcontroller C to open the plunger lock contacts I3fl I3I of the circuitcontroller. The biasing devices now being disconnected from the switchactuating shaft and the switch being unlocked, the hand-throw lever isnext rotated in the horizontal plane which it then occupies, through anangle of approximately 90 in a counterclockwise direction. Thisintermediate movement of the hand lever rotates the switch actuatingshaft I6 to the extreme position opposite to that in which it is shownin the drawings, thereby reversing the movable rails of the switch inthe manner previously described. As soon as the movable rails start tomove to their reverse positions, recess I42 in point detector rod Dmoves out of alignment with roller I4I, thus opening the point detectorcontacts I38I39 of circuit controller C. Furthermore, as the movablerails move to their reverse positions, the linkage which connects thelocking device IElIl with the tie rod 8 is actuated in such manner thatthe plunger 'bolt I2I is moved toward the left, and as soon as theplunger bolt has moved as far as the locking device was previously movedby the bell crank lever I09, the plunger bolt will engage the end memberIll!) of the locking device I00, and during the balance of the movementof the plunger bolt the locking device will be moved with the plungerbolt, so that when the switch reaches its full reverse position thelocking device will be moved to its extreme left-hand position. Theswitch points now being fully reversed, the hand lever 21 is nextrestored to its depending position. The final movement of the handlever, of course, restores the sliding sleeve 22 to its lowermostposition, thus reconnecting the star block I9 with the switch actuatingshaft, and at the same time permitting the connecting rod I I4 to returnto its lowermost position.

If, when the switch has been moved to its reverse position in the mannerjust described, it is desired to restore the switch to its normalposition, the hand lever 21 is first raised to its horizontal position,and is then rotated in a clockwise direction through an angle of 90, asviewed in toward the right.

Fig. 1, and is finally restored to its depending position and relockedin this position. The operation of the various parts of the apparatusunder these conditions is just the reverse of that described above, andwill be readily understood from the foregoing, and from an inspection ofthe drawings, without further description. 2

I will now assume that the parts are in their normal positions, as shownin the drawings, and that a train trails the switch. As the leadingwheels of a train roll along the fixed rail I, the movable rails Zand 2are forced over but before a sufficient force is developed at the pointsof these rails to overcome the opposing force of the spring units S andS and cause the point of the movable rail 2 to move out of engagementwith the fixed rail l, the movable rails being somewhat resilient,become bent so that with the usual standard split switch, the tie rod 8will be moved upwardly, as viewed in Fig. 1, three-quarters of an inchor more. This movement of the tie rod 8 acting through the switch basketI21, operating rod l2i5, bell crank lever 24, link I23, and plunger boltI2l, moves the locking device H10, in opposition to the bias of thesprings I08, a sufficient amount to completely Withdraw the lookingplunger [W from engagement with the notches I03 in the lock rod L, thusunlocking the switch. As a result, when the leading wheels of the trainhave reached the position in which a sufficient force is developed atthe points of the movablerails to cause the point of the movable rail 2to move out of engagement with the fixed rail 5, the movable rails willbe unlocked, and these rails will, therefore, be forced away from theirnormal positions by the wheels of the train in exactly the same manneras they would be if no point lock were provided. The movement of themovable rails away from their normal positions acts through theoperating rod 9 and crank I! to rotate the shaft IS in acounterclockwise direction, and this rotation of the shaft 16, in turn,rotates the associated sleeves 2| and 22, and the star block IS in thesame direction. The first few degrees of rotation of the star block l9causes the high portion of cam 68 to engage roller 88 and rotate rockerarm 85 in a counterclockwise direction tothe position in which theleft-hand end of this rocker arm is out of alignment with the roller 89.Further rotation of the star block I9 causes cam 13 to engage roller 12and thereby move the yoke 51 and pull rod 66 During this movement, therocker arm 86 remains in the position shown, so

: that the lower end of the floating plate 54, as

viewed in Fig. 3, is prevented from moving toward the right, and as aresult the movement of the pull rod 66 toward the right causes themotion plate to swing in a clockwise direction about the axis of theroller 94 as a fulcrum. The rotation of the star block also acts throughthe lugs 5| to move the spring bolt 44 of the spring unit S toward theright, and since the motion plate 54 at the side to which the springunit S is attached is prevented from moving to the right, the springbolt 44 acts through the member 38 to compress the spring 31, and hencecauses the spring unit S to exert an increased force tending to restorethe movable rails to their normal positions. It will be noted that themovement of the spring bolt 44 of the spring unit S which takes placeunder these conditions does not cause the spring 42 to becomecompressed, so that the entire force which is exerted by the spring unitS is due to the spring 31. The rotation of the star block 19 furtheracts through the lugs 53 to movethe spring bolt 44 of the spring unit 5toward the left until after the switch points have been moved a shortdistance beyond their mid stroke positions, whereupon the spring bolt 44of the spring unit S is moved in the opposite direction. During thismovement of the spring bolt, the housing 32 is simultaneously movedtoward the right due to the previously described motion of the motionplate 54, and the parts are so proportioned that the resultant relativemovement between the housing and the spring rod will always be inadirection to force the spring rod further into the housing 32. The partsare further so proportioned that shortly after the switch points havebeen moved past their midstroke positions, the end of the sleeve 48 ofthe spring unit S will move into engagement with the washer 43 and itwill be seen, therefore, that during the movement of the switch pointstoward their mid stroke positions, only the spring 3'! ofthe spring unitS? will become compressed, but that after the switch points have beenmoved past their mid stroke positions, the springs 31 and 42 ofthe'spring unit S will then both become compressed. It will also be seenthat the spring unit S and lugs 53 function like a toggle, so that alsoproduces some form on the switch points tending to restore them to theirnormal positions,

and results in a side thrust on the yoke 61. This side thrust, however,due to the fact that the magnet 80 is now energized by virtue of thetrack circuit of which it forms a part being completed by the wheels andaxles of the train so that the latch arm 18 is held down, is resisted byengagement of roller 15 with the straight sides of the groove H in thelatch arm until after the switch points have been moved to within ashort distance of their full stroke positions, after which thissidethrust is then resisted by engagement of the latch block 15 with thebeveled side portion of the grooove '11. The reason for resisting theside thrust on the yoke 61 by means of the roller 15 engaging thestraight side portion of the notch during the first part of the stroke,and for resisting the side thrust by means of the latch block andbeveled side portion of the notch during the latter part of the stroke,is that the side thrust is smaller at the end of the stroke than it isat the beginning, and it is desirable to nkeepthe size of the magnet 81)as small as possible, and at the same time insure that the latch willrelease if the magnet becomes deenergized when the switch is in its fullreverse position.

With the above described construction, the only time that the magnet 80has to resist any appreciable upward force on the latch arm is when theswitch points have been moved to substantially their fullstrokepositions in which positions the force of the latch arm is aminimum, .thus making itpossible to use a magnet of mini- The magnitudeof the various forces. 1' which are exerted on the switch points as theswitch points move from their normal to their a reverse positions inresponse to the trailing train mum size.

are shown graphically in Fig. 10, and it will be apparent from anexamination of this figure tha the force exerted on the points by thespring unit S when the points are within a short distance of theirreverse positions becomes greater than the opposing force due to springunit S and the reaction of the cam 13 against the roller "I2, with theresult that the spring unit S becomes effective to force the switchpoints to, and hold them in, their full reverse positions. The positionswhich the various parts of the mechanism 300- cupy when the switchpoints have been moved to their full reverse positions in response tothe movement of the trailing train through the points is shown in Fig.9. After the train has completely passed the switch, it will move ofithe track circuit in which the magnet 86 is included, and will thuscause this magnet to become deenergized. When this happens, the upwardreaction on the latch arm 18 caused by the side thrust of the latchblock 15 against the sloping sides of the groove 'i'l in the latch armwill cause the latch arm to swing upwardly and release the yoke 6i,whereupon the yoke 6'! will immediately swing upwardly and toward theleft, as viewed in Fig. 9, in such a manner as to allow the motion plate55 to return to its normal position in which it is shown in thedrawings, due to the reaction on the motion plate caused by the springunit S The return movement of the motion plate to its normal positioncauses the force which is exerted on the switch points by the springunit S to decrease below that which is exerted on the points by thespring unit S and the switch points will therefore immediately start toreturn to their normal positions. As the switch points return to theirnormal positions, the resultant rotation of the star block 19 will causethe cam 13 to cooperate with the roller ll! in a manner to return theyoke t'lto its centralized position in which it is shown in 3, and whenthe yoke reaches this position, the latch arm 18 will immediately dropto its normal position in which it is shown in Fig. 3. The movement ofthe star block to its normal position will also permit the connectingrod M4 to return by gravity to its lowermost position and will causeroller 88 to move off the high portion of cam 68 and onto the lowportion. of the cam, thereby permitting spring 95 to restore rocker arm85 to its normal position in which it is shown in Fig. 3. Furthermore,during the return movement of the switch points to their normalpositions, the linkage which connects the locking device Hill with thetie rod 8 will permit the biasing springs N38 to return the lockingdevice EBB toward its locking position, and since there is no deflectionof the switch points under these conditions, the locking plunger "W willbe moved into engagement with the side of the lock rod L before themovable rails of the switch points have reached their full normalposition in which the lock rod is in the proper position for the notches163 to receive the locking plunger. As a result, after the lockingplunger has once moved into engagement with the side of the lock rod.the locking plunger will slide along the side of the lock rod until thenotches H13 in the lock rod move into alignment with the lockingplunger, at which time the energy stored in the compressed springs !98will force the locking plunger to its normal locking position, thusrestoring the switch to its normal locked condition. If the notches H23in the lock rod L should not come into alignment with the lockingplunger under these conditions for any reason, or if the notches shouldcome into alignment with the locking plunger and the linkage whichconnects the lock-- ing device I00 with the tie rod 8 was then out ofadjustment, or was permitted to move beyond its normal locking position,plunger lock contacts l30l3l of circuit controller C would remain open,thus causing the signals controlled by the circuit controller to remainat danger. Furthermore, if, while the train was trailing the switch, themovable point 2 should have become bent or damaged so that when themovable rails had returned to their normal conditions, the movable rail2 failed to assume its proper position with respect to the fixed rail I,the point detector contacts l38l39 of circuit controller C would remainopen, which would also cause the signals controlled by circuitcontroller C to remain at danger. It follows, therefore, that withapparatus embodying my invention, under no conditions can a dangerouscondition exist due to a train trailing the switch when the switchoccupies its normal condition. I

I will now assume that the switch A has been moved to its reverseposition by means of the switch operating mechanism B in the, mannerpreviously described and that a train trails the switch. Under theseconditions, as the leading wheels of the train roll along the fixed railI and movable switch point 2, the movable rails will become deflected inmuch the same manner as when the switch occupies its normal position anda train trails the switch, but this deflection will now be in theopposite direction so. that the plunger bolt I2! of the linkage whichconnects the locking device Hill with the tie rod 8 will move toward theright instead of toward the left. As a result, the locking. devicewhich,

it will be remembered, normally occupies its extreme left-hand positionwhen the switch occupies its reverse position and no train is trailingthe switch, will now be moved toward its locking position by the biasingsprings 38 a certain amount, which amount may be sufiicient to allow thelocking plunger Hi9 to move into engagement with the side of the lockrod L. This movement of the locking device, however, will not cause thelocking plunger to enter the notches Iil3 in the lock rod L because whenthis. movement takes place, the notches [93 in the lock rod will then beout of alignment with the locking plunger. As the movable rails areforced open, shaft "5, sleeves 2| and 22, and star block l9 are rotatedtoward the position corresponding to the normal position of the switch,and lock rod L is likewise moved toward the position corresponding tothe normal position of the switch. The rotation of the star block 19actuates the two spring units S and S in such manner that the unit S nowbecomes effective to bias the movable rails to their normal positions insubstantially the same manner that the spring unit S became efiectiveto' bias the movable rails to their reverse positions when the switchpoints were .trailed toward these positions from their normal positions,and the magnet -becomes effective to resist the side thrust on the yoke61 as long as the train continues to trail the switch. Furthermore, therotation of the star block l9 causes the cam face 13 of the cam 13 toforce the connecting rod H4 upwardly in the same manner as when theswitch was trailed left-hand position.

position in which the locking plunger i is out of engagement with theside of the lock rod L. It will be seen, therefore, that under theseconditions, even though the switch is forced to its full'normal positionby the trailing train, thus causing the notches 33 in the lock rod L tomove into alignment with the locking plunger, the lockingplunger cannotmove to its locking position. It follows that with apparatus embodyingmy invention it is impossible for the switch to become locked in itsnormal position if it is moved to its normal position from its reverseposition by a. trailing train. After the train has completely trailedthe switch, the magnet 36 will become deenergized and will allow thelatch arm 18 to move upwardly in substantially the same manner as whenthe switchis trailed from its normal position. When this happens, thefloating plate 54 will return to its normal position and will thus causethe biasing force exerted on the switch points by the spring unit S tobecome less than that exerted on the points by the spring unit S withthe result that the switch points will then immediately start to returnto their normal positions. As the switch points return to their normalpositions, the cam 13 will cooperate with the roller 'H' to return theyoke 6'! to the position shown, and the roller 93 will ride ofi the highportion of cam 68 onto the low portion of this cam, and will thus permitthe rocker arm 88 to return to the position in which it is shown in thedrawings. As soon as the yoke 5'! reaches its normal position, the latcharm 18 will return by gravity to its normal position. Furthermore, asthe star block l9 returns to its normalposition, connecting rod H4 willalso return by gravity to its lowermost position. Locking plunger Milhowever, will remain out of engagement with lock rod L, because as theswitch points return to their reverse positions, there will be nodeflection of the movable rails, and the resultant operation of thelinkage which connects the locking device with the tie rod 8 willrestore the locking device to its extreme When the movable switch pointshave reached their full reverse positions, all parts will then occupythe same positions which they occupied before the train started to trailthe switch.

One advantage of apparatus embodying my invention is that it combineswithin one mechanism means for throwing the switch between its twoextreme positions, a mechanically operated facing point lock which looksthe switch for facing point moves but becomes automatically 'unlockedfor a trailing move, spring means for permitting the switch to betrailed, spring means for forcing the switch points to their fulltrailed positions when a train trails the switch and for subsequentlyholding the points in their full trailed positions until after the trainhas completely passed the switch, and latching means for releasing thespring mechanism and allowing the switch to return to its originalposition after a train which is trailing the switch has 'completelypassed the switch.

Although I have herein shown and described only one form of railwayswitch operating apparatus embodying my invention, it is understood thatvarious changes and modifications may be made therein within the scopeof the appended claims without departing from the spirit and scope of myinvention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

7 1. In combination, a. switch actuating shaft, a

star block, means for connecting said star block with and disconnectingit from said shaft, an electromagneticlatch, biasing means, and meanscontrolled in part bysaid latch for connecting said biasing means withsaid star block in such manner that said biasing means is effective whensaid latch is deenergized to bias said star block to one position butbecomes effective if said star block is rotated away from said oneposition more than a predetermined distance when said latch is energizedfor biasing said star block to another position.

2. In combination, a switch actuating shaft, a star block, means forconnecting said star block with and disconnecting it from said shaft, anelectromagnetic latch, biasing means, and means controlled in part bysaid latch for connecting said biasing means with said star block insuch manner that said biasing means is effective when.

and effective when said latch is deenergized to bias said star block toone position but effective if said star block is rotated away from saidone position more than a predetermined distance when said latch isenergized for biasing said star block to another position until saidlatch subsequently becomes deenergized, whereupon said biasing meansagain becomes effective to bias said star block to said one position.

4. In combination, a'switch actuating shaft, a star block, means forconnecting said star block with and disconnecting it from said shaft, an

electromagnetic latch, biasing means, and means controlled by said latchand by cam means formed on said star block for operatively connectingsaid biasing means with said star block in such manner that said biasingmeans is normally efiective to bias said star block to a first positionbut that if said star block is rotated away fromsaid first position morethan a predetermined distance when said latch is energized said biasingmeans will then become eifective to bias said star block to a secondposition.

5. In combination, a switch actuating shaft,

a star block, means for connecting said star block with anddisconnecting it from said shaft, two spring units each operativelyconnected at one end with lugs formed on said star block, anelectromagnetic latch, means for operatively connecting the other endsof said spring'units with said star block and with said latch in suchmanner that both said spring units are normally effective to bias saidstar block to a first position but that if said star block is rotatedaway from said first position more than a predetermned distance the oneunit will exert an increased force on said star block tending to restoreit tosaid first position and the other unit will exert a force on saidstar block which tends to move it to a second position and which exceedsor is less than the 7 force due to said one unit according as said latchis then energized or deenergized.

6. In combination, a switch actuating shaft, a

star block, means for connecting said star block with and disconnectingit from said shaft, two spring units each operatively connected at oneend with lugs formed on said star block, means including a cam on saidstar block and a frame surrounding said star block and carrying rollerswhich cooperate with said cam for operatively connecting the other endsof said spring units with said star block, an electromagnetic latcheffective when energized for controlling the movement of said frame bysaid cam, the parts being so arranged and so proportioned that both saidspring units are normally effective to bias said star block to a firstposition but that if said start block is rotated away from said firstposition more than a predetermined distance the one unit will exert anincreased force on said star block tending to restore it to said firstposition and the other unit will exert a force on said star block whichtends to move it to a second position and which exceeds or is less thanthe force due to said one unit according as said latch is then energizedor deenergized.

7. In combination, a switch actuating shaft, a star block, means forconnecting said star block with and disconnecting it from said shaft,two spring units each operatively connected at one end with lugs formedon said star block, an electromagnetic latch, means for operativelyconnecting the other ends of said spring units with said star block andwith said latch in such manner that both said spring units are normallyeffective to bias said star block to a first position but that if saidstar block is rotated away from said first position in one directionmore than a predetermined distance the one unit will exert an increasedforce on said star block tending to restore it to said first positionand the other unit will exert a force on said star block which tends tomove it to a second position and which exceeds or is less than the forcedue to said one unit according as said latch is then energized ordeenergized and that if said star block is rotated away from said oneposition in the other direction more than a predetermined distance saidother unit will exert an increased force on said star block tending torestore it to said one position and said one unit will exert a force onsaid star block which opposes the force due to said other unit and whichexceeds or is less than the force due to said other unit according assaid latch is then energized or deenergized.

8. In combination, a switch actuating shaft, a star block, means forconnecting said star block with and disconnecting it from said shaft,two spring units each operatively connected at one end with lugs formedon said star block, an electromagnetic latch, means including a cam onsaid star block and a frame surrounding said star block and carryingrollers which cooperate with said cam and a tail piece which cooperateswith said latch for operatively connecting the other ends of said springunits with said star block in such manner that both said spring unitsare normally effective to bias said star block to a first position butthat if said star block is rotated away from said first position morethan a predetermined distance the one unit will exert an increased forceon said star block tending to restore it to said first position and theother unit will exert a force on said star block which tends to move itto a second position and which exceeds or is less than the force due tosaid one unit according as said latch is then energized or deenergizedand that if said star block is rotated away from said one position inthe other direction more than a predetermined distance said other unitwill exert an increased force on said star,

star block, means for connecting said star block with and disconnectingit from said switch actuating shaft, an electromagnetic latch, a cam onsaid star block, a frame surrounding said star block and provided withtwo rollers which cooperate with said cam to move said frame to a firstposition with respect to said star block when said star block is rotatedto a first position but for permitting said frame to be moved from itsfirst position to a second position when said star block is rotated awayfrom its first position in one direction and for permitting said frameto be moved away from its first position to a third position when saidstar block is rotated away fro-m its one position in another direction,means on said frame cooperating with said latch and effective when saidlatch is energized for preventing said frame from moving to its secondand third positions but for permitting said frame to move to a fourthposition, a. third roller on said frame cooperating with said cam tomove said frame to its fourth position if said star block is rotatedaway from its one position in either direction when said magnet isenergized, and spring means operatively connected with said star blockand said frame and elfective for biasing said star block to its oneposition when said frame occupies its first, second, or third positionand for biasing said star block, to one extreme position when said frameis moved to its fourth position by rotation of said star block from itsfirst position in one direction and to another extreme position whensaid frame is moved to its fourth position by rotation of said starblock from its first position in the other direction.v

10. In combination with a railway switch, a switch actuating shaftmovable between two extreme positions and operatively connected with theswitch for moving the switch between its normal and reverse positions, astar block rotatable about said shaft, a manually operable leverrotatable in two planes, means responsive to rotation of said lever inone of said planes for rotating said switch actuating shaft between itstwo extreme positions, means responsive to rotation of said lever in theother plane for connecting said star block with and disconnecting itfrom said switch actuating shaft, an electromagnetic latch, means forenergizing said latch whenever a train trails said switch, and biasingmeans connected with said star block and with said latch in such mannerthat said biasing means is normally effective to bias said star block toa first position but that if said star block is rotated away from saidfirst position when said latch is energized said biasing means will thenbecome effective to bias said star block to a second position until saidlatch subsequently becomes deenergized, the parts being so arranged thatwhen said shaft is connected with said star block and said star blockoccupies its first position said switch will be biased to its normal orits reverse position depending upon the position which the switchoccupied when it became connected with said star block.

bias said star block to a first. position but that 11. In'combinationwith a switch, means including a switch actuating shaft'for moving theswitch between its two extreme positions, a star block rotatable aboutsaid shaft, manually operl able means for rotating said shaft betweenits two extreme positions independently of said star block and forconnecting said star block with said shaft whenever said shaft occupieseither extreme position, an electromagnetic latch, means for en-,ergizing said latch when a train trails said switch,

treme positions and operativ cly connected with the switch for movingthe switch between its normal and reverse positions, a star blockrotatable about said shaft,a manually operable lever rotatable in twoplanes, means responsive to rota- ,tion-of said lever in one ofsaidplanes for ro- 'tating said switch actuating shaft between its twoextreme positions, means responsive to rotation of said lever in theother plane for connecting said star block with and disconnecting itfrom said switch actuating shaft, an electromagnetic latch, biasingmeans, and means controlled by said latch and by cam means formed onsaid star block for operatively connecting said loiasingv means withsaid star block in such manner that said biasing means is normallyeffective to if said star block is rotated away from said first positionmore than a predetermined distance whensaidlatch is. energized saidbiasing means will then become effective to bias said star block to asecond position, the parts being so arranged that when said shaft isconnected with said star.

block and said star block occupies its first position said switch willbe biased to its normal or its reverse position depending upon theposition which the switch occupied when it became connected with saidstar block.

13. In combination with a railway-switch, a switch actuating shaftmovable between two extremepositions and operatively connected with theswitch for moving the switch between its normal and reverse positions, astar block rotatable about said shaft, a manually operable leverrotatable in .two planes, means responsive to rotation of saidlever inone of said planes for rotating said switch actuating shaft between itstwo extreme positions, means responsive to rotation of said.lever in theother plane for connecting said star block with and disconnecting itfrom said switch actuating shaft, two spring units each operativelyconnected at one end with lugs formed on saidv starv block, anelectromagnetic latch, means controlled in part by said latch foroperatively connecting the other ends of said spring units with saidstar block in such manner that both said spring units are normallyeffective to bias said star block'to a firstposition but that if saidstar block is rotated away from said first position more than apredetermined distance the one unit willexert an increased force on saidstar block tending to restore it to said first posltion and the otherunit will exert a force on said star block which tends to move it to asecond position and which exceeds or is less thanthe 75. force due tosaid one unit according as said latch 4 is then energized ordeenergized, the parts being so arranged that when said shaftisconnected with said star block and said star block occupies said firstposition said switch will be biased: to its .normal or its reverseposition depending. upon the position which the switchoccupied when itbecame connected with, said .star. block.-

14. In combination with a railway switch, a

switch actuating shaft movable between two extreme positions andoperatively connected with,

the switch for moving theswitchbetween its nor-,

mal and reversepositions a star block rotatable;

about said shaft, a manually operable-lever, ro-

tatable intwo lplanes, means responsive Ito-r0- tation of ,said lever inone :of saidplanes for.

itfrom said switch'actuating shaft, anelectro-7 trolled. in part. by:saidlatch in such; manner that said basingmeans,,is..-normally,effective to biassaid star: block to a first:position but that if said star block-isrotated-away from, said first.

magnetic latch,-means for energizing said latch whenever a train trailssaid switch, biasing means connected with said star block-bymeans con-tposition when said latch is-energized said biasing, means will thenbecome effective to. biassaid star blockto a second position until said-.latch-sub-.l sequently, ,becomes deenergized,:- the-:parts being,

so arranged that when said shaft is.,connected,. with said star blockand-said star. block occupies, said first position said switch will be,biasedto.-.;

its normalor its reverseposition depending upon, the position which theswitch-.occupied when it.

became connected with said star,block, means,for I locking theswitch,in. its normal position .con-

stantly biased to .a-.locking position, means, for

actuating said lockingmeans from its locking position to anunlockingpositionprior, to movement of the switch from; its.normalposition to its reversepositionby said switch actuatingshaft,

means actuated by a train approaching.theswitch,v

' in a .trailingdirectionwhen said locking means occupies its .lockingposition for actuating said 1.

locking means to an ,unlocking., position until after the train has.trailedthe switch, and means controlled .by said. star: blockforpreventingsaid locking means from.mo.ving. to itsflocking po sitionifsaid switchismoved to its .normallposi tion from itsreverse.nositionby. a trailing trainl,

15. In combination v.with.a switch,.;means lincludilig a switchfactuatingshaft, formoving the switch betweenits, two extremepositions,a star --55.-. block rotatable about. said .shaft,.manually open,

able means forrotatingsaid. shaft between its,

two extreme positions,independently ofsaid-start block and -.f orconnecting said star. block w'vith and disconnecting it from said shaftwhenever said shaft occupies either, ,extremepositiom,an.elec--tromagnetic. latch, means for. energizing, ,said

latch whenever a train trailasaid-switch;biasing means connected with,said.- star. ,block 'bymeans. controlled in .partby -said.latch, and normally-i effective to bias said switch to the extreme posi-.

tion which itoccupies when .it becomes connected.

with said shaft butfeifective when a train trails.

the switch for biasing the. switchto .its opposite,

extreme position as long-,as saidlatch'remains energized, ,lockinglmechanis m for, locking the. switch inone'r extreme positionlconstantlybiased to a .lock'inggposition, and-,ineans controlled ,by said staffblock forpreventing said .lockingjmecha-Q nism from moving. toitsilocking Position in the} event the switch is moved to said oneextreme position from its other extreme position by a train trailing theswitch.

16. In combination with a switch, means including a switch actuatingshaft for moving the switch between its two extreme positions, a starblock rotatable about said shaft, manually operable means for rotatingsaid shaft between its two extreme positions independently of said starblock and for connecting said star block with said shaft whenever saidshaft occupies either extreme position, an electromagnetic latch, meansfor energizing said latch whenever a train trails said switch, biasingmeans connected with said star block by means controlled in part by saidlatch and normally effective to bias said switch to the extreme positionwhich it occupies when it becomes connected with said shaft buteffective when a train trails the switch for biasing the switch to itsopposite extreme position as. long as said latch remains energized,locking mechanism for locking the switch in one extreme positionconstantly biased to a locking position, means for operating saidlocking mechanism from its locking position to its unlocking positionprior to movement of said switch from its one extreme position to itsother extreme position by said manually operable means, and meanscontrolled by said star block for preventing said locking mechanism frommoving to its locking position in the event the switch is moved to saidone extreme position from its other extreme position by a train trailingthe switch.

17. In combination with a switch, means including a switch actuatingshaft for moving the switch between its two extreme positions, a starblock rotatable about said shaft, manually operable means for rotatingsaid shaft between its two extreme positions independently of said starblock and for connecting said star block with said shaft whenever saidshaft occupies either extreme position, an electromagnetic latch, meansfor energizing said latch whenever a train trails said switch, biasingmeans connected with said star block by means controlled in part by saidlatch and normally effective to bias said switch to the extreme positionwhich it occupies when it becomes connected with said shaft buteffective when a train trails the switch for biasing the switch to itsopposite extreme position as long as said latch remains energized,locking mechanism for locking the switch in one extreme positionconstantly biased to a locking position, means for operating saidlocking mechanism from its looking position to its unlocking positionprior to movement of said switch from its one extreme position to itsother extreme position by said manually operable means, means actuatedby a train approaching the switch in a trailing direction when theswitch occupies its one extreme position for operating said lockingmechanism from its locking to an unlocking position until after thetrain has completely trailed the switch, and means controlled by saidstar block for preventing said locking mechanism from moving to itslocking position in the event the switch is moved to said one extremeposition from its other extreme position by a train trailing the switch.

18. The combination with a railway switch of a mechanism connected withsaid switch and comprising, in combination, manually operable means forthrowing the switch between its two extreme positions, locking mechanismbiased to a locking position and effective to lock the switch for facingpoint moves over the switch, means for moving said locking mechanism toan unlocking position when a train trails. the switch, anelectromagnetic latch, means for energizing said latch when a traintrails the switch, and spring means controlled in part by said latch andnormally effective to bias the switch to a selected extreme position buteffective when the switch is moved away from the selected extremeposition by a trailing train for biasing the switch to and holding it inits opposite extreme position as long as said latch remains energized.

19. I'he combination with a railway switch of a mechanism connected withsaid switch and comprising, in combination, manually operable means forthrowing the switch between its two extreme positions, locking mechanismconstantly biased to its locking position and effective when in itslocking position for locking the switch in one extreme position, meansactuated by a train approaching the switch in a trailing direction whenthe switch is locked in said one extreme position for actuating saidlocking mechanism to unlock the switch until after the train iscompletely past the switch, means for moving said locln'ng mechanism toits unlocking position prior to movement of said switch from its oneextreme position to its other extreme position by said manually operablemeans, an electromagnetic latch, means for energizing said latchwhenever a train trails the switch, spring means connected with saidswitch by means controlled in part by said latch and normally eifectiveto bias the switch to a selected extreme position but effective when theswitch is moved away from the selected extreme position by a trailingtrain for biasing the switch to and holding it in its opposite extremeposition as. long as said latch remains energized, and means forpreventing said locking mechanism from moving to its locking positionwhen said switch is moved to one only of its two extreme positions by atrain trailing the switch.

HERBERT L. BONE.

